IT has taken five years of genetic detective work to give a name to the condition that has robbed Ashton Hancock of his ability to hear, talk and walk. Doctors suspected he had a syndrome when he was born six years ago, but gene analysis technology was not yet able to complete a full interrogation of his DNA. Last year, through the work of the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute’s neurogenetic […]

On Sunday 8th we featured on ABC Radio National’s program All In The Mind.  Listen to the full episode on the RN website below. http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/allinthemind/the-mysterious-corpus-callosum/7377346 The corpus callosum links one side of our brain to the other. It’s not essential for survival, but in some people it’s missing or malformed, and this can cause quite mild to extreme disabilities. Some people may not even know of the problem until they have […]

QBI’s new Deputy Director (Research) Professor Linda Richards assumed the position of President Elect of the Australasian Neuroscience Society at their annual meeting in August 2015 in Cairns, and will become ANS President in 2016. In a year that has also seen her elected as a fellow of the Australian Academy of Sciences, Professor Richards is enthusiastic about the opportunities presented by these roles. “I see the ANS presidency as […]

It is estimated that just one baby in every 3000 is born with a disorder of the middle part of the brain (corpus callosum) however incredibly two of Kristina Coburn’s three boys have the condition. The corpus callosum has more than 200 million nerve fibres making it the largest wiring pathway in the brain, transmitting information between the left and right hemispheres. In some babies the corpus callosum is completely […]

ABBY Harrison is full of beans, often in bouts of laughter and loves her Australian rules football. But the five-year-old has an undeveloped Corpus Callosum – the band of nerve fibres joining the two hemispheres of the brain – which means she is unable to walk or talk. Her parents, Niki and Steve Harrison, are hoping to raise $50,000 to bring international specialists to Australia to educate other parents and […]

Four-year-old Tara has a very special brain. Like Rain Man, she was born without a Corpus Callosum. It’s the head’s superhighway — a thick band of nerve fibres connecting the two hemispheres of the brain. Join Natasha Mitchell as she experiences a day in the life of the Ingerson family, with rare insights into one of the most complicated neurological birth defects. Original broadcast: 12/4/2008 Listen to the full show […]